Harvest Moon to glow bright on Friday the 13th

Friday night's full moon is the Harvest Moon, considered one of the most popular moons of the year.

Author:
Brian Lada

Published:
9:55 AM CDT September 11, 2019

Updated:
9:55 AM CDT September 11, 2019

Superstition will fill the air on Friday the 13th, a day commonly known as one of the unluckiest days of the year. As the sun sets, one of the most well-known full moons will fill the night sky and possibly bring a little extra bad luck with it.

Friday night's full moon is the Harvest Moon, considered one of the most popular moons of the year. The origin behind this moniker dates back hundreds of years.

"The Harvest Moon provides the most light at the time of year when it was traditionally needed most: during the harvest," the Old Farmer's Almanac explained on their website. The full moon closest to the September equinox is given the name of the Harvest Moon. Under the bright light of the full moon, farmers could work well into the cool September night to harvest their summer crops before electricity was around to power lights.

"Unlike other full Moon names, which are specific to their respective months, the Harvest Moon is not tied to September. Instead, it depends on an astronomical event: the autumnal equinox," the Old Farmer's Almanac said.

The Harvest Moon typically falls in September, but on occasion, it may rise in early October.

This year, the September equinox falls on Sept. 23, 2019 at 3:50 a.m. EDT.

Other names for September's full moon include the Full Corn Moon and the Barley Moon in the Northern Equinox and the Crow Moon and the Sugar Moon in the Southern Equinox.

For centuries, some people have considered Friday the 13th to be a day of bad luck, although the precise origins of the day are up for debate.

With a full moon set to rise on Friday the 13th, some may think that this could bring some extra bad luck or misfortune for those that are superstitious. For some, a full moon is considered bad luck similar to walking under a ladder or breaking a mirror.

In 2007, Dr. Raegan Wells co-authored a retrospective study at Colorado State University that examined whether the volume of animal emergency room visits increased on the days of the full moon. The data indicated that the "risk of emergencies on fuller moon days was 23 percent greater in cats and 28 percent greater in dogs when compared with other days," according to a school news release.

After the full Harvest Moon on Friday night, the next major astronomy event will be the September equinox, marking the astronomical start to autumn across the Northern Hemisphere and the start of spring for the Southern Hemisphere.